Traveling to Kyoto - Into the World of VOLKS and Super Dollfie . . .

Wow so many great suggestions. I'm also part of the FDQ volunteer group going and I'm soooo excited. Thank you everyone for your suggestions. I guess I'm one of those blonde/blue gaijin that better learn to pose and smile. LOL Honestly I'm so thrilled that I don't think they'll be a time when you won't see a smile on my face. Like this:

 

The best thing about Kyoto is that they have an absolutely fantastic bus system. Go to the station every morning and go up to the second floor tourist info center. This one is for people who speak japanese, but it's okay, they won't turn you away if you don't. Learn how to ask for a bus pass. It is 500 yen for a one-day unlimited pass. If you ride the bus three times in one day, it has already saved you money. And it is in an easy to use swipe card format, saving you the hassle of trying to find change.

I loved going to the temples in Kyoto. Kinkakuji and Ginkakuji are must sees (the gold and silver pavilions). Also, be sure to get to Kiyomizu temple (kiyomizudera) to see what I imagine must be spetacular fall foliage. The Gion shrine is another popular one and it's pretty back there. Heian shrine is right near the zoo and the prefectural museum of art. Also close to the Heian shrine is a museum of prefectural crafts. It's really cool because it shows you the processes behind traditional crafts such as lacquer, dyeing, and a lot of other cool things. And they have a great gift shop. The Frommers guide is really great actually about telling you what to see and what to skip and it tells you how to get everywhere.

I'd like to know whether Volks plans to open an Eastern USA branch of their Tenshi no Sumika stores.

 

OMG I can't believe I forgot to mention Uji! It's a lovely little day trip from Kyoto. If you're interesting in the Tale of Genji it's a great place to go because the last 10 chapters of the Genji are set there. Also, I just love Byodo-in. Really pretty place.

 

Thanks for the suggestion. Costume museum sounds fantastic! I hope we can get there. Thanks so much!

 

One of my most memorable things about going to Japan was the Samurai/maiko make over in Gion. I spent an hour getting dolled up in a kimono and then had a photographer follow me around all the alleys of Kyoto. It was an amazing cultural experirence and it was really funny because we came across other tourists who thought I was an actual geisha and started taking pictures of me as well!!!

If you have a spare half in Arashaiyama then take the Romantic train up the mountain and the boat back down the river. It was a really peaceful ride and it was really nice to get a different perspective on the wildlife. I saw heaps of monkeys and turtles and birds on the way back down that i didnt see from the train.

I would also encourage you to head to the two mandarake stores in Osaka. Im fairly sure one of them at least has a decent range of second hand dolls. I think it might be the grand chaos store.

 

My second trip to Kyoto I visited a great spa with hot (very HOT) outside and inside pools. It was about hour away by local train. Wonderful experiment!!! Hot spa -a must thing to do!!!
As somebody said earlier, there are very few people talking any english -so any kind of dictionary will help you (if you don't already know japanese).
And yes, cash is the way to pay everything everywhere!
Nara is a beautiful place to visit -especially the place where there are those thousands of stonelanterns (sorry, can't remember the name of the place...)
Nagoya is quite near Kyoto (fast to get if you take the shinkansen) and it is a great city to visit -because it is not so filled with tourists. And there is a great aquarium at the Nagoya Port.
Have a great trip!!!!
(I shall also go to Japan this fall to visit my brother who lives in Nagoya. Counting days... )

 

I went to Japan just recently, and they were excited to see us, they weren't really into much picture taking of Americans. ^^; Unless you were an american boy and flirted with every girl you saw.
Back OT, Kyoto's really nice! Ok actaully everywhere we went in Japan was awesome, but if you get the chance, visit the Mountain Shrine there. Its quite a haul getting up there... (hence 'Mountain' shrine.) but a fascinating shrine at that!
** I remember the places I went to, but not where they are located...
Then if you decide to train hop there is the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum which is a must see. Its adorable!
** JAPAN IS HOT. (Very Hot, very Humid. Makes thick wavy hair unhappy.)

 

Question for anyone who has been to Japan. Do they have the same voltage stuff as us or do you need to bring a converter thingy to use blow dryer, etc? Thanks.

 

No, you will not need an adapter for your hair dryer. Its the same as in the US.

 

Excellent, thanks Izayoi. One less thing to pack.

Bruce, I like your new avatar.

 

is it a must to know Japanese when travel in Japan? i went to there once and when i spoke English, the Japanese seems very confuse...

 

Actually no, the voltage IS different. I's about 10 volts lower than in the USA. That said, it's not enough to make a huge difference in how things run (though stuff like dryers might not get as hot and stuff like phones might recharge more slowly) so you don't need a voltage converter unless you're really paranoid. Also, if you're staying in hotels, you shouldn't need to bring your own hair dryer. Hotels supply them in the room. What you might need is an adapter for the actual plugs. Japanese outlets only have two prongs, and while some are polarized (i.e. one slot is longer than the other) many still are not. You want to make sure you have an adapter with you that will allow your three-pronged plugs to fit in two-slot outlets. If you buy an adapter with two evenly-sized prongs, that's the best choice because it will fit in any outlet, even the ones without polarized slots. If the items you want to use in Japan have two evenly-sized prongs, you're good to go without the adapter. You can get adapters at places like Best Buy, Radio Shack, or maybe even Staples or the electronics sections of Target and Wal-Mart, and they are usually quite light-weight and inexpensive. You might have to buy an entire set of different types of adapters rather than just getting the one you want, though.

Regarding the issue of whether or not knowing Japanese is a must...technically no, it's not. Signs are all written in Japanese and English, even in smaller towns that almost never get foreign tourists (like the town where I lived last year). Also, if you confine yourself to larger cities like Kyoto and Tokyo, you can usually find someone somewhere who speaks a little bit of English, and you can find things like bilingual menus in restaurants. However, in my opinion, the more Japanese you know the easier your trip will be. The more you know, the less likely you are to have to hunt for people who speak English or to spend a lot of time looking for places with English menus (this is more of an issue if you really need to know what's in your food and can't just point to a picture or a window display and go "I'll have that!") and the more likely you are to be able to strike up interesting conversations with random people. You CAN get around in Japan without speaking a word of Japanese. My parents have proven that it's possible, because they don't speak any Japanese and they can still get from place to place. But they also say things went a lot more smoothly for them when they had me around to translate, even though my Japanese is really basic and beginner-level and there is still a lot I don't understand.

 

You all have such good suggestions and you've reminded me of the sights I saw when I went a decade ago. I can't wait to go back next year. Fire Festival!!!

Okonomiyaki, shabu shabu, and katsu curry, oh my gosh, I'm in junk food heaven. The bakeries! Mmmmmm. Skip most of the Western chains, like McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, or Denny's. Total let down unless you're desperate for something that looks familiar. (Yes, I ate my way through Japan.)

As for the sights, Nijo Castle, Kinkakuji, and the Heian Shrine were very memorable without being utter tourist traps. If you look at the old architecture much, prepare to be overwhelmed by the sheer age of the structures. Some have existed twice as long as North America has been colonized.

Anyway, as for local events and color, look around for any festivals or flea markets. You never know what you'll find.

If you happen to spend any time in Tokyo, for fabric shopping I recommend the Nippori neighborhood (1 stop north of Ueno Station, head east from the train) and Okadaya, a fabric and craft store located on the edge of Kabukicho in Shinjuku.

 

I always said that if I had a chance to go to Japan, this doll museum would be at the top of my list. It's called Angel Doll Museum and looks like it has some of the most beautiful dolls I've ever seen. I know that you pretty much will just have 3 full days to take in everything, but if your near Tokyo, this might be a great place to visit.
Carmela

http://www.angel-dolls.com/index.html

 

Thank you Shiori. I guess I'll bring an adaptor. I'm actually worried about my flat iron. I can do without the blow dryer but not the flat iron. I am a bit worried now about it not getting hot enough. That HAS to be hot. I'll check best buy and see what they have.

Thanks Meldandy for the advice of places to see. I keep adding things to a list I'm keeping.

Carmela that museum sounds wonderful but I don't think we're going to be near Tokyo. We just found out we're flying into Osaka not Tokyo so I doubt we'll be going there. Just not enough time.

 

Also helpful: bilingual maps and phrasebooks. I know there's a bilingual map of Kyoto for sale on Amazon.com, and you could probably get bilingual maps (or at least English and Japanese copies of the same map) for free at your hotel if you don't want to buy one. Lonely Planet puts out a good phrasebook that covers the majority of situations you could possibly need.

For stuff like buying tickets, you may not need Japanese. The shinkansen stations usually have English-speakers staffing the ticket counters. However, if you do want to try in Japanese, make sure you know how to say where you're going, what kind of car you want (unreserved, reserved, Green), and whether you want round-trip or one-way. The stations display all of the train information in Japanese and English so you shouldn't have any problem finding the train you want. You can even check ahead of time and have all of the information written down if you use Hyperdia. If you're using the subways, you usually buy the ticket for each trip at a machine. It's pretty easy to figure out, and there's usually a button to push for English assistance on each ticket machine. The stops are all displayed above the machines, with your station marked in red, and then all of the price for your trip is displayed underneath the stop name. So if you're at Oike-dori station and you want to go to Shijo station, you find Shijo on the map and the price (210 yen, I think) will be displayed underneath. Like I said, easy. You just have to be patient with yourself when you're first figuring it out.

And don't feel bad at all, I lived there for a year and I can't discuss philosophy either :p Kimono, on the other hand...

 

Although I'm hoping to pick up Rosetta Stone today, I suspect you, dear Bruce, have probably made the most progress in this area. You may inadvertently become our front man!